NWOutdoorGrrl

Part of my job as climbing instructor is organize and teach an overnight field trip where would-be climbers learn how to travel on a rope, use their ice axes, and test their ability to survive in the cold. Normally, I would have held this field trip at Stephens Pass ski area, but because of an unusually snowy spring, they stayed open longer than I anticipated.

The other confounding problem with the field trip was snow. There was WAY too much of it! You wouldn’t think that this would be much of a problem, except that the avalanche danger was through the roof for this time of year. And skiers, boarders, and snowshoers all over the Cascades were getting buried every other day. Not good.

On to Plan B…except that there was no Plan B. Dratz!

Not quite sure where to go, another instructor, Glenn, and I decided that we ought to go for a mid-week scoping trip. We reviewed the avalanche forecast, powered up our avy beacons, and packed shovels and probes. The avalanche conditions were marginal, but we felt prepared for risk. (Nick called dibs on my Rodriguez bike.)

The going was pretty tough. Two people carving a path in thigh deep snow get very tired very quickly. Fortunately, we found a suitable spot. But not before two random skiers ran into us, asking what the heck we were doing out there.

“Um, snowshoeing…”

“Didn’t you read the avalanche forecast?”

“Yes, we did. Thank you.”

“And you decided to come anyway?”

Thinking in my head: “Well, so did you!”
Out loud: “Thank you for your concern. We have beacons, shovels, and probes. It is a risk we were willing to take.”
Thinking in my head: “And where are YOUR shovel, beacon and probe?”

“But you’re traveling so close together.”

Thinking in my head: “So are you and who the heck are you anyway?”
Out loud: “Thank you. We evaluated the slope and felt comfortable with our traveling distance.”

Then we got a lecture on the avalanche terrain of the basin, a warning to stay out of the way of skiers (because Alpental just opened the backcountry and they’d be coming through here pretty fast), and some general comments that gave me the impression that they were pretty much assholes who didn’t want anyone messing up their fresh snow.

It was one of the weirdest encounters I’ve ever had with someone in the backcountry who wasn’t a ranger or ski patrol or some other appropriate authority.

Glenn and I shook our heads and wandered downslope toward the valley where we ultimately found the perfect camping and practice spot.

I was not the only one to pooh-pooh the idea of Ducati releasing a cruiser bike. I mean, talk about a violation of the brand on a scale similar to Porche deciding to sell an SUV. What is the world coming to?!

Of course, at the end of March, Nick, my dad, and I couldn’t resist the call of free beer, music and a party to celebrate the bike’s unveiling. And, I will admit, that it looks better in person than it does in Ducati’s promotional pictures.

• Steep trails
• Two consecutive hours in the month of March when it doesn’t rain
• Friends with funny stories
• Two strong legs and a pair of healthy lungs to carry me up mountains
• Happy dogs who like to hike
• Rocks (to slow Marla down)
• Random strangers on the top of Tiger Mountain who know how to compose a photo

I picked up my camera for the first time in over two weeks yesterday and lo and behold there were a bunch of unprocessed pictures on there! Clearly, I’ve got some catching up to do.

This is a picture of one of dinner at the end of March – pasta smothered in homemade marinara sauce and topped with no-meat-balls with a side of roasted asparagus.

I’m posting it, not because you care about what we had for dinner, but because I want to say two things about plant-based eating:

First, can be really easy to eat this way. We made a big batch of no-meat-balls (with chickpeas, mushrooms and spices) and marinara sauce and froze it in individual portions. It took us about 25 minutes to get this meal on the table. Five minutes to prep the asparagus for roasting. Then when the asparagus was in the oven, we cooked the pasta and heated the sauce. With five to ten minutes of asparagus roasting time left on the clock, we tossed the no-meat-balls in the oven to heat and poured some wine. Voila!

Second, eating mostly plants doesn’t mean you have to give up all of your favorite meals. The only thing you give up is that sluggish feeling when the meal is done.

If you’re interested in giving this recipe a try, you can find it in one of our favorite cookbooks: Vegan on the Cheap by Robin Robertson.

Bentley & Vespa could definitely teach Simon’s cat a thing or two about hunting bunnies. But then the story might have a slightly more sinister ending.